News Release

Reading performance levels in Core5 showed strong correlation to NWEA MAP scores and led to increased use across CSUSA’s network of schools

BOSTON, March 12, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- An analysis of more than 22,600 K–5 students within the Charter Schools USA (CSUSA) network found that incorporating recommended use levels of the Lexia Reading Core5® program into instruction resulted in substantial growth in reading skills during the 2016/17 school year, over and above that achieved with non-Core5 instruction. Among students who regularly reached their usage targets with Core5, the percentage working on skills in or above their grade level increased from 44 percent to 91 percent – an improvement of 47 percentage points. In fact, students’ reading growth was so impressive that CSUSA increased the number of schools using Core5 from five to 47 within the school year.

In most CSUSA schools, Core5 is used grade-wide for K–2 students, but the program is used only for intervention purposes for grades three through five. CSUSA assessed students’ reading abilities in the fall, winter and spring using the computer-administered, adaptive screening tool, NWEA™ MAP®. Performance was captured with RIT (Rasch unIT) scores, which measure student achievement on an equal-interval scale across all grades, and researchers compared students’ fall and spring levels in Core5 to their fall 2016 and spring 2017 MAP RIT scores.

“We found a statistically significant correlation between MAP and Core5,” said Lexia President Nick Gaehde. “In other words, students’ levels in Core5 at the beginning and end of the year closely matched their MAP RIT scores in the corresponding time periods. Best of all, Core5 students who met their Core5 usage targets had higher gains in MAP across all grades.”

Overall Comparisons for Students in Grades K–5In addition to the increase in students working at or above grade level, the percentage of students working on skills two or more grade levels below their grade decreased from 19 percent to only two percent. Students who met their usage targets in Core5 increased their RIT scores by an average of 15.6 points. In comparison, students in the non-Core5 schools increased their RIT score by 12 points on average.

Results and Comparisons for Students in Grades K–2Among K–2 students meeting usage targets in Core5, the percentage working on skills at or above grade level in Core5 increased from 46 percent to 95 percent, leaving less than one percent working on skills two or more grade levels below. Students who met usage targets also significantly increased their RIT scores by 16.8 points, on average, compared to the students in the non-Core5 schools who increased their RIT score by an average of 15.5 points.

Results and Comparisons for Students in Grades 3–5Among students in grades 3–5 meeting usage targets in Core5, the percentage working on skills in or above grade level increased from 38 percent to 75 percent. Students who began the school year reading just below grade level and met their usage targets increased their RIT scores by an average of 10.6 points while those who started the year well below grade level increased their RIT score by an average of 11.8 points. These gains were significantly greater than those of students in the non-Core5 schools who made RIT score gains of only 8.8 points, on average.

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“We are very pleased with the gains we are seeing in our schools using Lexia Reading Core5,” said Michael Braggiotti, data analyst, innovations, CSUSA. “The engagement features in the program keep students motivated to learn, and the robust reporting features allow teachers and administrators to monitor student progress closely. Engagement with the program, by both students and staff, has helped close the gap for many students. We look forward to using the findings from this research to motivate 100 percent of our students to meet their usage targets!”

“We believe that a strong implementation leads to strong results. This successful partnership between Lexia and CSUSA is based on the schools’ commitment to working with our implementation team to ensure that their use of the program provided teachers with the greatest opportunity to accelerate student outcomes,” said Gaehde.

Lexia Reading Core5 is a research-proven, technology-based program that accelerates the development of fundamental literacy skills for students of all abilities in grades pre-K–5. Following a rigorous scope and sequence built for college and career ready standards, Core5 provides explicit, systematic instruction through personalized learning paths in six areas of reading. Core5 seamlessly adapts with student performance, targeting skill gaps as they emerge and equipping teachers with the data and instructional resources they need to personalize instruction for every student. Embedded assessment technology predicts students’ year-end performance and provides ongoing norm-referenced and actionable data to help teachers prioritize and plan instruction with the offline instructional materials.

About Lexia LearningLexia Learning, a division of Rosetta Stone, empowers educators through adaptive assessment and personalized instruction. For more than 30 years, the company has been on the leading edge of research and product development as it relates to student reading skills. With a robust offering that includes solutions for differentiated instruction, personalized learning and assessment, Lexia Learning provides educators with the tools to intensify and accelerate literacy skills development for students of all abilities. For more information, visit www.lexialearning.com.

About Rosetta StoneRosetta Stone Inc. (NYSE: RST) is dedicated to changing people’s lives through the power of language and literacy education. The company’s innovative digital solutions drive positive learning outcomes for the inspired learner at home or in schools and workplaces around the world.

Founded in 1992, Rosetta Stone’s language division uses cloud-based solutions to help all types of learners read, write, and speak more than 30 languages. Lexia Learning, Rosetta Stone's literacy education division, was founded more than 30 years ago and is a leader in the literacy education space. Today, Lexia helps students build fundamental reading skills through its rigorously researched, independently evaluated, and widely respected instruction and assessment programs.

For more information, visit www.rosettastone.com. “Rosetta Stone” is a registered trademark or trademark of Rosetta Stone Ltd. in the United States and other countries.

About Charter Schools USACharter Schools USA, founded by Jonathan Hage in 1997, is the first education management company to earn corporation system-wide accreditation through AdvancED and is one of the nation’s leading charter school management companies. CSUSA currently manages 84 schools in seven states serving more than 70,000 students in pre-kindergarten through 12th grade. CSUSA innovative educational advantages include advanced technology, meaningful parental involvement, student uniforms, consistent and fairly-enforced discipline policies, highly qualified and motivated staff, community focus, integrated character education and high academic growth and performance.

"Safe Harbor" Statement under the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995: Statements in this press release regarding Rosetta Stone PR's business which are not historical facts are "forward-looking statements" that involve risks and uncertainties. For a discussion of such risks and uncertainties, which could cause actual results to differ from those contained in the forward-looking statements, see "Risk Factors" in the Company's Annual Report or Form 10-K for the most recently ended fiscal year.